The full blood count is the test which is very commonly used by doctors in order to evaluate your overall health. This test measures the different types of cells present in the blood including, red blood cells, the many different white cells and platelets. It also gives an idea about other parameters such as hemoglobin and hematocrit.

Your doctor will order this test as part of a routine monitoring, as it gives vital information about your overall health. Or if you complain of symptoms which indicate towards an infection, such as fever, cough, nausea and vomiting, then your doctor will most likely request you to have this test done. This test is helpful to doctors to diagnose a variety of conditions. It is sometimes used as part of disease monitoring to determine how well you are responding to the treatment.

There are no special preparations that you have to make before you undergo this test.

During this, a Medical Lab Technician will draw out a small volume of blood, using a needle and syringe which is inserted into a vein in your arm. This blood sample is then sent to the lab for analysis.

Since this test is a simple drawing of blood, you will not feel a lot of discomfort. You might experience a mild pain on inserting the needle, but you will not experience any uneasiness afterwards.

There is very little risk in undergoing a full blood count test, because it is a simple blood drawing. Very rarely you might continue to have a mild pain or some swelling at the site where the needle was inserted, but these symptoms will resolve on their own within a couple of days.

Since the full blood count gives you a measure of different components in blood, each of the levels have to be evaluated carefully. Your target values should be as follows:
• Red blood cells (RBC) – for males it should between 4.32 to 5.72 million cells/mcL, for females it should be between 3.90 to 5.03 million cells/mcL.
• White blood cells (WBC) - 3,500 to 10,500 cells/mcL
• Platelets - 150,000 to 450,000/mcL
• Hemoglobin – for males it should be between 13.5 to 17.5 grams/dL, for females it should be between 12.0 to 15.5 grams/dL
In your report you will also find the values for many other components, but these are by far the most important. If your test report shows any abnormal values, you should speak to your doctor about it.

If you suffer from any pre-existing health condition such as anemia, low immunity or liver disease, the results of this test can vary.

https://medlineplus.gov/lab-tests/complete-blood-count-cbc/ https://www.mayoclinic.org/tests-procedures/complete-blood-count/about/pac-20384919 https://www.webmd.com/a-to-z-guides/complete-blood-count#2